The Fall
by 13AnimePrincess13
Summary: Naruto is the only one to see Sakura fall off the roof. She comes back as a ghost, but there's a catch - Naruto's the only one who can see her. Slight NaruSaku. Warning: Suicide
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto…yet. *gets hit with a pie*

**AN:** Hey guys, been a while since my last post. Hope you like this fanfic. Please comment!

The Fall

Prologue

**Sakura**

I looked down because down was where I was going.

One deep breath and a heave later, I was on the other side of the safety rail. You know the one; the kind that keeps you from falling off of the top of a tall building and going _splat _– right on the pavement or sidewalk or whatever.

Had I become a part of that danger, in hopping to the other side?

Wind whistled through my ears, and I wondered how they'd react; who _would_ react. For most of them, I'd just become something to talk about for a little while. And then they'd move on.

And I wouldn't.

I heard footsteps behind me. I knew I should've jumped then, before whoever it was tried to stop me (assuming they would). I was human, though, and humans were never known for being perfect. I turned to see who it was.

And slipped.


	2. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Naruto or Naruto characters or stuff. This is where you cry. Because I am. (Jk :P)

**AN:** Yay for updates! Thanks for reading this far, guys. :) I hope you've liked it so far.^^ Please comment, cause I love comments~! Comments make me happy~! X3 Thank you, for you guys who commented already!

**To:**

**FA113N ANG31**: Wow, thanks so much! XD I hope you keep liking/reading it^^

**Sariko-chan723**: Thank you! X3 Yeah, I'm sorry about the short chappy ^^' I'll try to make them longer in future, so bear with me for now ^^'

**DemonEcstacy**: Sorry about that^^' I know I wasn't too clear. It's kinda suicide and it kinda wasn't, since she was planning to kill herself, but slipped. And ty! :D

**mrgrimjaw**: Why, thank you ;)

The Fall

Chapter 1

**Naruto**

Konoha High School had one of those boring assembly things at the beginning of every school year so they can pretend we did something on the first day back. They wasted a good hour and a half going over stuff like rules and policies and other things no one cares about.

I didn't pay that much attention. I was sitting next to one of my friends, so why would I when I could talk instead?

There is one thing I did remember hearing, though. I think it was because it had to do with the place everyone (me included) wanted to go at some point in their high school career.

"No one," said Principal Tsunade on that first day of my freshman year, "under any circumstances, is aloud to go on the school rooftop."

Kiba and I exchanged grins. We were so going to do it.

The first two months of school, though, there always seemed to be teachers hanging around the only entrance to the roof. I guess they realized that telling us not to go there was only going to make us want to go more. Most days, Kiba and I would walk by the entrance using the excuse that we were going to the vending machine down the hall. When nothing happened, the teachers slowly stopped going there and began to hang out with other teachers during their breaks instead.

Finally, one day, our chance came. The hall was deserted. No cameras were in sight. Our chance came.

It felt amazing to eat lunch on the roof. We kept doing it, and no one ever bothered us. We got more of our friends to come with us, even. As the weather got colder, we decided to eat inside. Winter passed, and we ate on the roof again.

April hit. Kiba and the others bought their lunch, and I'd brought mine (ramen), so I went ahead to the roof like usual.

Except someone was already there.

I recognized her. It was hard not to. No one else had hair like that in our school. But what was she doing? She'd gone over the safety rail. Not even we would do that; there was less than a foot of room to stand on that edge. The roof was three stories high.

That's when I got it: she was going to jump.

I didn't know what I was going to do; I just knew that I was going to try to do something. I didn't want her to jump. I didn't want her to die. Not her. Not her. Never her.

She turned around, fast, her green eyes flashing in my direction. She looked surprised when she saw me. And even more surprised when she fell.

She fell.

Sakura-chan fell.

My eyes burning, I ran for her – too slow, but I had to try.

"SAKURA-CHAN!" I screamed as loud as I could, flinging myself precariously over the rail that made her so far out of reach.

I made it just in time. To watch her hit the ground.

**Sakura**

When I died, there were no angels who glided down to guide my soul to a world above the clouds. No dark shadows of death dragged me down to burn for eternity, with only some evil red dude with a pitchfork and horns as company. I didn't see any dead people; I met none of my dead pets. Not even Goldy, who'd been flushed down the toilet when I found him floating at the top of his tank the morning after my mom bought him for me. I saw no Light.

All that was there was the pain; the fear; the hot blots that speckled the back of my eyes, so black they were white. And someone who called my name in an endless, strangled wail. Someone I knew.


	3. Chapter 2

**AN:** Hey guys! Thanks for reading this far! :3 Hope you guys enjoy it!

**Good for You to Know:** I think you should know that, while I've had several family members die, I've never actually attended a funeral. (They all lived too far away for my parents' to agree to letting me miss school.) Therefore, I apologize if something seems inaccurate to you.

Also, I'm going to start using Japanese suffixes like –chan and –kun, because it's a habit I don't have enough motivation to get rid of anymore! XD

**Disclaimer:** As much as all of us would like me to, I sadly don't own Naruto.

**To:**

**Yoi no Chi: **Thank you, I appreciate it! :D And thanks again! XD That's the first time someone said that to me over the net~^^

**x808alldayx: **I'm glad you think so^^ hope you enjoy it and keep reading in future~ :3

**little firework: **Thanks :)

The Fall

Chapter 2

**Sakura**

Once upon a time, there was a girl who had pink hair. Not a princess, just a girl. She lived in a house, in a town where almost everybody else lived in a house, too, and the town was peaceful. (By peaceful, I mean there weren't any wars, famines, epidemics, those kinds of disasters. Obviously, people had stuff going on in their own little worlds.)

The girl went to school, she had friends, she had a family; everything was great, right?

Then why did she leave for good?

**Naruto**

Konoha's one of those places that doesn't get a lot of rain. I'm not saying it's a desert or anything. We're practically a rain forest compared to places like Suna, where they say that sometimes even cacti have a hard time getting enough water. Still, there's no denying that we could definitely use some more.

My godfather, Jiraiya, told me that there's been this saying ever since Konoha was first established. "It was believed," he'd say sometimes, "that it only rains when the spirits of the deceased are upset." Or something like that anyway. Of course, I usually had some questions after that. Why did they get upset? Wouldn't they be upset a lot more than that because they're, well, _dead_? He never answered them.

Whether I believed it before, I can't say for sure. As I watched the sky cloud over on the day of Sakura's funeral, though, I definitely thought that there might be some truth in that.

**Sakura**

I was nowhere. Not in Heaven or Hell, not in outer space, not in Konoha, not in my house. I wasn't even in my body.

"_Sakura-chan_!"

What did that make me, I wonder? Was I just air?

"_Sakura-chan_!"

I mentally sighed. It never ended – over and over, I heard him shouting my name just like he did right before I hit the ground. I tried to tune it out, but it never, ever ended. If I had a head, I bet it would be hurting right now.

"_Sakura-chan_!"

He never changed. That guy was always shouting non-stop, always doing whatever he felt like even if it bothered other people to no end, always having his mind set on ramen. Always smiling and laughing, and always trying to make me smile and laugh, too.

The kind-hearted idiot.

My chest clenched.

"_Sakura-chan_!"

His voice sounded strangled, desperate, pained. Did it hurt him? Did _I _hurt him? Of course I did. How could anyone see someone die and not be affected?

"_Sakura-chan_!"

I felt so frustrated. Why wasn't it ending? It was supposed to! That's what death was: The End. How much longer would I have to be like _this_, stuck without anything but a voice calling out my name again and again and who knew how much more?

"_Sakura-chan_!"

I hated this. I _hated_ this! I wanted out!

"_Sakura-chan_!"

"Shut up!" I hollered as loud as I could. "Shut up! Shut up! _Shut up_!" My eyes burned. Tears began to well up, and I squeezed them shut in a pathetic effort to somehow force them back in.

But wait.

How could I speak without a voice? How could I cry without eyes?

I stopped crying and wiped away my tears. _What_ _tears_, though? Wiped them away with _what_?

That's when I heard them: sounds. The sound of rain; the sound of crying (several people too, from what I could tell); and then–

"Sakura…-chan?"

**Naruto**

It started raining about a quarter into the priest's speech. Most people whipped out umbrellas, while a majority of the rest ducked under their friend's umbrella or under their hoods. I was one of the few people who let myself get wet. I didn't care about clothes or hair. It wasn't important; not here, and not now.

I tuned out what the priest said about her, focusing instead on what _I knew_ about her. We'd known each other since way back – back when cootie-infested girls dominated the playground, terrorizing the male population by chasing us as they made kissy-faces. She chased me around the most. She didn't make kissy-faces at me though. (Actually, _I _did it a few times to _her_. I thought we were going to get married back then.) She just chased me around and tried to beat me to a pulp a lot.

I loved to make her angry. Even more, I loved making her laugh. It was challenging – she got grumpy a lot, and easily, too. Sometimes, though, she'd crack a smile that looked almost as inviting as a big bowl of pork ramen after a bad day. She would even turn a little pink, occasionally. Then she'd punch me.

It didn't change much as we got older. If anything was different, it was that my life was in way more risk than it was back in Kindergarten. There was that, and she stopped chasing me.

I was in pain. Thinking about her hurt, it hurt like hell, but I didn't stop. I could at least do this much for her, by making sure she wasn't forgotten, since I couldn't make her mad anymore. I couldn't make her smile anymore. I couldn't save her.

Some family members went up to talk to everyone about her. They talked about her life, her achievements, her would-be future; things like that. Then they talked about her death. Before my chest had been hurting, but now it felt like it going to explode.

In my mind, I saw her glancing back at me looking surprised, then dead a moment later.

I needed to focus on something else, or I knew I'd lose it.

I looked at the gathering of mourners again, nicely dressed in black underneath their colorful umbrellas. Some were crying. Some were pretending to be sad. Some were messing with their bouquets of flowers. A few were staring at someone or something with a blank, unfocused look. Ino Yamanaka, her long-time best friend, was one of them.

I wanted to go home. I didn't like being here, surrounded by the depressing effects of their even more depressing cause. I had enough of those feelings on my own without these strangers' dark atmosphere to help. If I stayed, it felt like I'd be swallowed by the empty places where Sakura was supposed to have been.

Why did she have to do it? What made her do this to us...to _herself_?

I glanced at her body, dressed and surrounded by flowers in its coffin. She wasn't smiling. I turned away and began to walk, watching a replay of that day on the roof behind my eyes. I got to the edge of the crowd, and started walking through rows of graves towards the exit. No one stopped me. One or two people even looked like they wanted to follow my example, though maybe for different reasons, but stayed put anyway.

The tall, dark gates of Konoha's cemetery were about fifty feet away from her final resting place. As I passed through the open doors, I saw something pink out of the corner of my eye.

I was already turning before I had time to stop.

Sakura-chan stood there with tears rolling down her cheeks.

And looking like she was totally among the living.

"Sakura…-chan?" I said slowly.

My mind was blank; a colorless void I could reach into and search in forever for something, only to find that there was nothing there to be found.

After a few lifetimes of gawking, I finally managed a thought: Who the hell spiked my ramen?

**Sakura**

I had a body now. That had to be it. I could feel it. More importantly, I had something to feel _with_. This body of mine was now equipped with a good set of five senses, instead of only the memories of them.

I could hear. And so I listened; to the rain, to the crying people, and then to...my eyes flew open.

The first thing that I saw was Naruto. The mere sight of him triggered an unusual combination of emotions to flood through me. I was angry because he'd been the one who kept repeating my name like a broken record. Happy, too, because I never thought I'd see him again. Embarrassment came a bit later, but it hit just as hard as the others. He'd been the last person I saw, the last one to see me breathing. He'd seen that. I found that I hoped he was upset that I'd die. Last, I was guilty for wanting such a thing.

I probably didn't have enough room left in me for an ant.

Then again…what was I doing here?

"Where am I?" I asked him at last, not caring how cliché that sounded.

"Hit me."

That totally threw me. The emotion stuff slid off for a second, taking some questions down with it. "_What_?"

"Sakura-chan, I want you to hit me." His expression was uncharacteristically serious. The idiot, he meant it!

"Why?" I asked suspiciously, giving him a look.

"Never mind why, just do it."

I was dead, so didn't that make me a ghost? Would that even work, or would my fist just go right through him?

Well, only one way to find out.

I drew my arm back, stepped forward and slammed my fist into his face.

**Naruto**

I fell onto my back, hard.

I guess my ramen didn't get spiked after all.

**AN:** Please comment! They're my source of motivation, so I'd really appreciate it!


	4. Chapter 3

**AN:** Hi guys! I'm so sorry for the late update! DX I've just been so busy lately with school (Ugh, omg exams! _When do they end_? DX) and family drama. (I know: "You and the rest of the world," right?^^') I'm sorry! And~ I hope you have a Happy Memorial Day!

Thank you so much for all of your wonderful (and in some cases, downright unusual O_e…lol) reviews! _Please_ keep them coming! I love you guys, you're so nice! X3

**To:**

**Emmy loves her Demon Naru: **Awwwz~X3 Yay! XD I'm glad you decided to eye it a little closer~ ;)

**little firework: **haha yayz! :D Glad ya liked it^^

**tvizz: **lol XD

**MiscellanousAnime: **Thanks lol XD And wouldn't want that, now would we ;)

**Yoi no Chi:** Lmao! XD I'm happy to hear that^^ XDD lol thanks^^ I'm sorry you're sick :( (or were^^') the funny thing is though that not long after you gave that comment, I got a stomach virus. O_o (not a cold though!^^) lol isn't that ironic? XD

**Gold Testament: **ikr o.o lol

**mrgrimjaw: **thankies :3

**TheresADogOnYourHeadCo: **sorry for the wait :(

**xJuStDoNtCarex:** Lmao! No way! You serious? XD and thanks ;)

**All:** I love you guys! X3

* * *

><p><span>The Fall<span>

Chapter 3

**Sakura**

Naruto fell onto the rain-devastated ground with a nasty squishing noise. Mud splattered all over him, while more was sent flying through the air in different directions. I could smell it everywhere: that murky, filthy...um, _mud_-smell that gives you the urge to stop, drop, and make a dash for the shower like there's no tonight. I could see it as well, covering Naruto and every inch of bare ground. It was definitely raining. Mud had definitely shot right at me.

And yet…I didn't feel a thing. I haven't _felt_ a thing.

Nothing, that was, except for Naruto's jawbone.

**Naruto**

Instinctively, I reached my hand up to touch the place on my face that Sakura-chan had (punched / crushed / demolished / pulverized). A few seconds later I regretted it. You'd think she'd hold back a lit– oh my God! I dropped my hand and jerked up my head.

Sakura-chan wasn't dead! (Well yeah, she was, but she was still _here_.)

My breath escaped me in a whisper. That whisper turned out to be a word – a name.

"Sakura-chan…."

And I was watching her fall again, watching her bleed again, watching her die _all over again_.

But she was still there, standing in the rain and looking up at the sky with a strange expression. Her hand was outstretched, as though to catch the little droplets of water that had washed daylight away.

She was still there, looking at the graveyard; at those who had come to say goodbye to her too, too late.

**Sakura**

I was in a rain forest. That was it.

Everywhere I looked there were trees of all kinds: tall and short, thick and thin, old and young, intricate and simple, flowering and non-flowering, head-trees and foot-trees, angle-shaped and cross-shaped. Trees made of stone and trees made of marble. And all of them were being drenched under the same sky.

A group of black blobs had collected around one tree like moss, completely obscuring the tree itself from view. It seemed as though they had been responsible for the sobbing I had heard earlier. From their direction I could hear soft whimpering and painful shrieks, steady and unsteady voices saying unintelligible words, sniffling and shuffling, and more sobs.

While I hadn't been paying attention, Naruto had risen to his feet and covered the distance between us. He put his hand lightly on my shoulder to get my attention.

Part of me wished he wouldn't be so gentle, wanting him to put all of his overflowing energy into crushing me down into the mud, down through the ground and through the layers of soil and earth and who knew what else. I just wanted down, down, down – away from here.

He wasn't smiling. I wasn't smiling. I doubted that the black moss-people were, either.

No one came here to smile.

"Do you want to go?" he asked.

Did I? I wasn't sure.

I was surprised when Naruto added, "I think you should." Though slightly bashful, he persisted, "It only happens once. And you're here."

He was too nice to say them, but the words he really meant were clearly written underneath his voice:

Watch it till the end. You did this. You did this to us; to yourself. You chose this.

_It's passed the point of no return._

I nodded.

Naruto took my hand and led me to my grave. Literally.

XXX

Naruto's feet went _squelch-splurch-splash_ through the water-saturated ground. Mine made no noise. They couldn't have: they weren't there. They were resting inside a fancy, polished box along with the rest of me.

In books they say that moments like this take forever to end. Those authors didn't know what the heck they were talking about. In reality it didn't take long at all: it was just much, much too short.

As we joined the black moss-blobs, they became more defined as individuals rather than one large mass. Some of them looked up when they heard Naruto approaching before returning to their own dark, solitary mental-worlds of gloom so they could mourn in privacy.

I'm not quite sure what I'd thought would happen. Something kinda like having people scream my name, crush me in vice-grips of love, break into a new set of tears for joy. Maybe you could throw in a party. Perhaps I'd be sent to live the rest of my days in a padded cell, under the watchful eyes of doctors that hated their job because they were stuck with a bunch of mentally-challenged and/or psychologically-unstable strangers.

I didn't expect them to look right where I was standing and look away as if I wasn't there. (I wasn't, but still.)

I recognized these people. Some of them were friends; some were family; some of them I barely knew. Then I saw _his_ face, the face of someone who I hadn't expected or wanted to see. Not here, not ever.

I stopped. Naruto looked at me questioningly, but I didn't respond.

What was _he _doing here?

**Naruto**

Not long after we entered the crowd, Sakura-chan came to a halt out of nowhere. Thinking she was backing out, I turned around to try and coax her into taking those couple extra steps. From the looks of it though, I wasn't on the same page as her.

She stood there staring bug-eyed at some dude. My automatic reaction was that she thought he was cute or something, but sense caught up a second later and I opted that out.

Confused, I looked at her for an explanation. She ignored me. I paid closer attention to what her expression showed: disgust, confusion, anger. Apparently, he wasn't number one on her good list.

Worried, I took her hand again firmly but gently (I hoped) and dragged her away from him.

She opened her mouth to say something (judging by her expression, it wasn't exactly going to be a complement), but I beat her to it.

"Are you alright?" I asked her. I looked her straight in the eye.

Jiraiya says that for some strange reason people are more likely to believe that you're sincere when you do that. And I wanted her to know just how sincere I was; to know that there was at least one person who really cared.

**Sakura**

Naruto looked into my eyes, looking worried. I liked his eyes. They were always bright, even in weather like this.

"Are you alright?"

How many times has someone asked me that, I wonder.

"I'm fine," I answered. By now it was automatic.

_How many times did I lie and say I was?_

He raised a skeptical eyebrow.

I laughed bitterly and looked down, away from those eyes; away from that light. It felt like I was too dark bear looking at them anymore. (Oh my God, I did _not_ just say that.)

"No," I said in a whisper. "No, Naruto. I'm not alright."

Even as Naruto patted my head in an awkward attempt of comforting me, I continued looking down. Down, away from him and the living. Down, down, down into a pair of lifeless, dull eyes.

My eyes.

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><p><strong>AN: <strong>I'll try to update really soon! Pleeeeeassseee review~! I love you guys!


	5. Chapter 4

**AN**: Sorry for the late update, really! Anyway, heeeere's chapter 4! Yay! :3

Thanks for the reviews guys, keep it up! (PLEEEEEEEEAASEE!)

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. If I did, I'd rule the world by now.

**To:**

**tvizz:** thank you so much! No, lol, that wasn't on purpose^^' If I make any other mistakes, please tell me! I appreciate your honesty :D

**Gold Testament:** we'll see ;) thanks for sharing your prediction^^

**Yoi no Chi: **awwz, you're sick again? D: I sowwy. But lol, yes, darn those mischevious purple unicorns! XD thanks so much for your enthusiasm, it really brightens my day

**Emmy loves her Demon Naru: **and reading your reviews give me the giddies (whatever the heck those are XD) you're so sweet! Like cookies (yum, cookies) and we get tons of rain here so I totally understand^^ I like rain though so I don't really mind (sorry, rambling^^')

**mrgirmjaw: **arigatou~^^

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><p><span>The Fall<span>

Chapter 4

_If life is measured in years,_

_then how_

_do you measure_

_a person's death?_

**Sakura**

In this world, in this city, time is always on the move. We all learned that the hard way. Whether you want it or not, things will keep going and people move on. It's up to you to move with them.

My burial was no exception.

The rain-pelted lid of my coffin was placed over my feet, my body, and my unseeing eyes. Slowly, I descended into the earth, where I would_ slowlyslowlyslowly_ disappear – from the world, and from these people's memories.

_The End_.

I avoided Naruto's concerned gaze, afraid that he'd somehow be able to realize exactly what I was thinking right then.

…_Or so it was supposed to be._

I couldn't say why but I knew I didn't want him to find out. Thinking about his reaction made me feel guilty, somehow.

All of a sudden, I felt ashamed of my weakness. _Guilty?_ I felt _guilty_ over a _thought_?

No, I told myself, I didn't. I couldn't. If I felt guilty over something – especially over something so small – the guilt would invite friends, and those friends would invite more friends. They would have a huge party, throwing and tearing and destroying in chaotic noise until I broke. Party over. Sakura over. Nothing would be left but pieces and pieces of pieces.

I _could not_ break. Not now. Not again.

**Naruto**

We were all invited to gather at Sakura-chan's house after the funeral. There, we were to mourn and comfort her family, cry blood once we had no tears or sweat left.

I didn't want to go, but I wouldn't tell Sakura-chan that. If she went, I would follow. I couldn't leave her there to go alone. I glanced at her to ask her if she was going, but she wasn't looking at me. She didn't seem to see me at all. Her eyes were focused – locked, almost – onto the fresh mound of dirt/mud that had been placed before the angel-shaped stone with her name on it.

To my surprise, I found myself shivering. It definitely wasn't the weather; today was way too warm for that. But when I found myself looking at Sakura-chan's eyes, they weren't hers. They were _that_ girl's: the one who had just been staring glassily at us all, making me feel so uneasy, right before she was swallowed by the surface. I didn't think I'd see her again, but here she was.

And it scared me – not for myself, but for Sakura-chan. Sakura-chan, who was nowhere to be found.

**Sakura**

The crowd was beginning to shuffle out of the graveyard. I caught Ino among them. Ino, who'd moved one-fourth around the world months ago. Something in my chest throbbed painfully.

Almost right behind her was _him_. It made me boil in my skin (figuratively speaking) to see him here, wearing that expression of false sadness for everyone. He wasn't upset at all. If he was, it was because he'd lost his favorite plaything, rather than the person that plaything had been.

XXX

Once upon a time, there was a little girl with pink hair. One day, her mother told her she'd be spending the summer with her aunt's family. Though the little girl cried and screamed that she didn't want to leave her mommy and daddy, she was still forced to go at the end of first grade.

There, she was introduced to _him_ for the first time – he, who was older than her by a little more than a year, her cousin.

Every summer after that, she spent with him.

And so began the little girl's undoing.

XXX

I didn't realize how cold I was until once again Naruto took my hand in his and gently tugged me away. Once we reached the exit, he took me aside to make room for the leaving crowd.

Looking into my eyes, he sighed in relief (for what, I don't know).

"Do you want to go?" he asked.

"Go?" I repeated, not quite getting his meaning.

"To your house," he explained. "Your parents are holding a...a _gathering_."

I paused, thinking. My mind was rather blank, though, so thinking was hard at the moment. "Are you going?" I asked.

He looked almost embarrassed when he answered, "Only if you are."

I kinda smiled. (What's a "kinda smile" anyway?) "I guess I'll have to go then." I hesitated, looking to the side as I found my face getting warm. "Without you there, it'll be impossible for anyone to smile." _He_ was an exception of course. I doubted he'd need Naruto's unending stock of warmth to leer at anyone.

When I turned back to Naruto, he was beaming. Dead people clearly weren't supposed to look at such cheerful things – it wasn't good for their heart. They just might die again. Scratching the back of his head with one hand, and still firmly holding mine with his other, we walked to my house in an almost peaceful silence.

**Naruto**

Sure enough, the "gathering" was overstocked on depression. Sakura-chan's mother grieved in the living room, while her father offered drinks to those gathered around his wife in a croaky voice. He, himself, clutched at the glass of wine in his hand.

I felt the elation from Sakura-chan's words before fade. Everywhere you looked, there seemed to be some form of devastation. Though the room was neat, many people were crumpled messes.

Without meaning to, I find myself gazing at Sakura-chan imploringly, silently asking the question all of us wanted answered: "_Why_?"

She looked straight at me this time. Any light in her eyes disappeared, and once again I looked into the terrifying gaze of someone I didn't know.

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><p><strong>AN:<strong> Thanks for reading, please review!


	6. Chapter 5

**AN:** Here's the next chapter! :D

**Please Read: **Some of the things (actually most of the things) that happen to Sakura in this chapter are things that have happened to my best friend. Not that I think any of you would (but you never know), I'm going to ask you to please keep rude/mean comments to yourself.

Key:

normal

_flashback_

_inner thoughts_

Shoutout to said friend!: (Idk if you're reading this but) I'm so proud of you! You've been through so much, and you're always keeping your head held up high! That's part of what I love about you, Emmy-chii! X3

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

**To:**

**Yoi no Chi: **Nu, stop it~ You're embarrassing me~ X3 ...*silence* Nu, don't stop! XD OMG EVIL COOKIES? O_O has the world ended for such a thing to exist? :O (well, i already knew raisin cookies were evil...=.=) well, as long as they're still delicious it's fine^^ Silly, the sword-weilding weasels moved to Egypt, everyone knows that! you'll just have to wait for the next mass-Leopluradon hatching to be rescued. and _IKR_! what's with those people? O_o i mean, you'd _think_ they noticed that purple unicorn problem ever since the rabid jackalopes took over Europe! (they're my buddies~! 8D) and thank you very much for reading & reviewing~ :3

**Emmy loves her Demon Naru:** Danke shun~! (that means thank you in German^^) :D Yeah, Naruto is a good boy~ :3 (Tobi is too, though! X3) I'm glad you noticed that part! :D I'm sorry it's short, I hope this one makes up for it. Hope you like it~:D

**mrgirmjaw:** thank you~:D back at cha, you're a great reader^^

* * *

><p><span>The Fall<span>

Chapter 5

**Sakura**

Kentou Oonishi was the image of a perfect little gentleman when his mother introduced the two of us. My eyes were swollen and bloodshot, my face was blotchy, and frankly I didn't really care who the heck he was because I was too busy being distraught over my temporary separation from my parents. Even so, he greeted me with as much politeness as an eight-year old could possibly muster. We exchanged somewhat toothless smiles, my tears subsided, and all was well.

It wasn't bad at first; actually it was kind of fun. Without any other children around, we went to each other for entertainment and spent our time playing games. Sometimes we had to compromise: he played girly games for me, and in exchange I played boy games with him. That was the only source of discontentment, and even that wasn't so bad.

However, I repeat: that was _at_ _first_.

He started getting moodier, meaner. It started off little; he'd do small things like force me to play only what he wanted, or made me "share" (which was apparently his word for "give") my dessert with him. I should have known what to expect when he took my cookies, but I was little and trusting, and so naturally I didn't suspect a thing.

When he continued taking my desserts, I told on him. Oonishi-obaachan* punished him by giving me his desserts for three days. Kentou didn't like that. He didn't like tattletales, either. He retaliated.

We would pretend to be soldiers in an army, and he'd _really_ start beating on me. When I told on him, all he got was a scolding of, "Don't play so rough!" For the rest of the first summer, I refused to play with him.

The next few summers, it only escalated. I don't know if it was the desserts or if he just hated me, but he started hitting me when no one was around, game or no game. He'd deliberately sit across from me during meals so he could kick my shins and crush my toes. I told on him but like before he would only receive a scolding. Scolding did nothing to stop him – it only seemed to fuel his desire to punish me for whatever I'd done. I got bruised, had small cuts from his uncut toenails (the adults just thought I'd been scratching bug bites too hard), had my hair yanked and insulted and tiny chunks of it ripped from my scalp, and was subjected to all the other little pains he could squeeze into my daily activities. He received time outs when he was caught but never stopped. It was then that I started losing faith in adults.

_"Hey, Sakura-chan, long time no–," a pint-sized Naruto cut his greeting short to stare at my bandaged legs on our first day back in school. "_Whoa!_ Are you okay? What happened to–_oof_!" _

_I socked him in the gut because he was attracting too much attention. …And, well, because it was just fun to punch the guy._

_He just crumpled to the tiled floor, and I watched in mild fascination as he looked up to me from his crouched-position and grinned heartily. "Did you get stronger? Geez, you're as strong as a monster!"_

_I whacked him over the head when my cheeks began to burn._

I hoped that in elementary school, Kentou's rage would wear off (which it didn't) or that perhaps my parents would decide to let me spend the summer somewhere else – _anywhere_ else, so long as it wasn't _there_. It seemed futile though; they claimed that after working hard all year long, they wanted a break as well as some "Mommy-Daddy Time". They sent me to two weeks of paradise called "summer camp" in fifth grade, but that was the only exception.

During those summers spent with Kentou, his developing brain came up with new methods of torture. He "accidentally" dropped my Nintendo DS into the toilet. Later, he "accidentally lost" all of my DS games, too. After watching a movie with his parents, he borrowed its idea of replacing my shampoo with some unidentifiable substance that took forever to get out of my hair. One morning, I woke up missing an entire foot and a half of hair, which had been scattered over my clothes. That was the only time I saw him get grounded.

From time to time, he would show signs of guilt. Sometimes I'd see his eyes widen a little or his expression twist in some form of internal conflict. Maybe he would hesitate with a look of confusion marring the mischief in his eyes. There would be occasional days when he would try to be _extremely_ nice to me.

I was so confused. I didn't know what to think during times like these. He was supposed to be the bad guy, the antagonist, but then he'd go and show signs of remorse. Was he really all that evil? Did this mean he was going to stop?

Then he'd start bullying me again. Sometimes it would get even worse than usual after his bouts of guilt, as though intensifying his mistreatment would somehow justify to Kentou the wrongs he did to me. He continued to surreptitiously hurt me.

Sure, a lot of times I would beat him up in return (he was way smaller than me back then), but he always found ways to get double-payback.

It was endless.

_"Sakura-chan, how was your summer?" asked Naruto, his blue eyes twinkling gleefully. Somehow, we'd wound up in the same class yet _again_ in fourth grade. "Jiraiya took me to the beach and for some reason we kept chasing around some pretty girls in swim suits. I don't think he knew them, though." He paused, looking confused, then shrugged. "So what did you do?"_

_Unfortunately, the teacher was watching so I couldn't hit him for now. _

_I found myself actually about to tell him the truth, but I quickly stopped. Instead I only said, "Nothing."_

_Naruto's eyebrows knitted together as if he didn't understand my reply, but I didn't elaborate. If I shared even a little, I knew I'd end up spilling my guts to him._

In middle school my parents decided to let me stay home during summer break. I _finally_ had Kentou-free summers. I got a cell phone and loved it, I was asked out on a date for the first time (although it was only once, it felt awesome to be liked), and I was making good grades and new friends. It was bliss – I was free, free, free!

Then Kentou moved. In one fell swoop, he went from being across the city to living two blocks away. His childish pranks stopped; he'd grown out of them. They were replaced by teen pranks. I don't think they even counted as pranks anymore. I had no idea how (although I suspected my parents were involved), but he got a hold of my cell phone number and kept leaving weird messages. He made fake accounts on sites like Facebook and pretended to be me, calling himself (or rather, _me_) a bunch of names, telling my friends a load of bullshit, and posting photo-shopped pictures of my head on naked bodies. Not all of them were girls. Not all of them were human.

My parents called the police, and they tracked him down as the culprit. He was stopped.

He wasn't punished.

Apparently, he was taking a medication that had a side-effect of making him do things that he might not ordinarily do. Therefore, he wasn't held responsible for his actions.

I was no longer harassed, but the damage was done.

I stopped wanting to go out with my friends and shut myself up inside my room. Even though I rarely felt hungry, there were times when I ate and ate and ate past fullness, to the point where I seriously feared that I was in danger of gastric rupture**. I started to forget how to talk, to _really_ have a conversation with someone else. The harder I tried, the harder being near other human beings became. I told myself that it was they who kept drawing away from me, but in reality it was _I_ who pushed away from_ them_.

Away, away, away. I wanted away. I wanted far, far away.

_Away _

_Away _

_Away_

_I was walking through the halls of Konoha Middle School with my head down. Though I doubted anyone bothered to greet me, I didn't notice if someone did. _

_Suddenly, there was a hand on my shoulder and I turned, expecting to see Ino (who was by then one of my few remaining friends). Instead I found Naruto Uzumaki, grinning radiantly, as if his head was a star. (No wonder his grades suck – his brain was made of gas.)_

"_Hi, Sakura-chan!"_

"_Hi," I said, my voice curt._

_He frowned. "Are you okay?"_

_I paused to bring forth an answer – the _only_ answer – for his question. I weaved through bones and muscle and blood, choked it up my esophagus, just to say that one word:_

"_Yes."_

I stopped returning calls, stopped texting unless it was important, stopped leaving my room when unnecessary. My parents got me a therapist, but that did nothing. Nothing. I became lethargic, going to bed right after I completed my homework after school; never in the mood to muster the energy in the rare case that there was something I wanted to do. I became numb as my world got smaller and the people in it stopped to matter or appeared not to care about me. (Why care about them, if they don't care about me?)

Empty seconds became empty years, and I only grew hollower.

Nothing had a point anymore, nothing had meaning. "Why should I meet new people when I probably won't ever see them again?" and "Why should I go outside if I'm just going to come right back inside?" and "Why should I care how I look if no one else does?" were the kinds of things I thought. Eventually, it got down to this: "I'm not doing any good. I'm not doing anything. I don't have a future."

And now, I never will.

XXX

Back on earth, Naruto was looking at me. I don't know if it's on purpose or what, but his expressions are enough to say what he's thinking. Not that it stops him from talking. At the moment he seemed to be asking for an explanation. In our current setting, it wasn't to hard to figure out what he wanted to know.

He wanted to know why.

I didn't want to tell him.

_I've tried so hard this whole time I've wanted to tell him I want to tell him I want him to know so bad_

_...but..._

_I can't._

I didn't want to tell him. Even though I did, I didn't. I was confused. My thoughts and emotions were stirring, swirling, meshing together and blurring at the edges so that I couldn't tell which was which; where one ended and another began. I was a mess, a jumble of undefined sensations and emotions that shouldn't be there; shouldn't even _exist_.

I shouldn't even exist.

I stumbled away from these people - these _living people_ - to go somewhere else. I ascended the steps and tumbled into my room, slammed onto my bed and curled myself into ball.

What was I doing here? It wasn't supposed to be like this. I wasn't supposed to be here; I didn't _want_ to be here! I left them all behind. I left _everything_ behind! There was nothing left for me here, no remaining attatchments to keep me shackled to this place.

I felt a pressure against my back. It was so warm, so soothingly comfortable that for a moment all I wanted was to fold myself around that heat and stay like that for the rest of my ghostly days.

How strange, I thought, that despite the mess I was right then, I could still have such a lucid thought. Then I realized: it was because I wasn't a mess anymore. That heat, that pressure - something that simple had somehow managed to calm the turmoil that had been about to tear me apart.

Without unraveling my limbs, I craned my neck to see what I already knew I'd find there: the one possible attatchment I might have left.

**Naruto**

When Sakura-chan stumbled away, looking as though she was about to be sick (Can ghosts even throw up?), it didn't take a Shikamaru to figure out something was up. Somehow, I got the feeling that if I didn't follow her then I might lose her - to _that_ girl.

Again.

Only this time, for good.

Broken legs wouldn't have stopped me from going after her.

I found her in a room I assumed was hers, curled up as if trying to make herself vanish into thin air. Normally I'd have taken the time to look around. But there was absolutely _nothing_ normal about this situation (seeing as Sakura was a ghost and all). Instead, I sat on the edge of her bed, my lower back up against hers. I was turned a little so I could still see her. Somehow I felt like I didn't need to talk. (Not that it ever stopped me before.)

She twisted her neck and looked at me with (thank God) her usual clear stare.

"Idiot. Don't just walk into my room without permission," she said with a smile that was so weirdly friendly it was...kinda creepy. Awesome, but still creepy.

"My bad," I laughed. "I'll knock next time."

Silence.

My stomach somersaulted and blood pulsed through my cheeks like it had a mind of its own. "Not that I'm coming in here again! Well, I guess I might, but it's not like that- I mean-"

Sakura-chan rolled her eyes and disconnected an arm from her coil. When she raised it, I gulped.

I was kinda surprised when I didn't feel pain. I was _really_ surprised when she grabbed my arm and yanked me down onto her bed.

**Sakura**

"S-Sakura-chan!" Naruto squeaked. I uncurled and turned on my side to face him. God, he made tomatoes look pale.

Laughing in an unladylike way, I reassured him, "Don't worry, I'm not gonna do anything."

"I didn't think-" he blustered, but I just rolled my eyes and gave him a gentle punch to the shoulder. He winced. (Well, it was_ meant_ to be gentle.)

"Make yourself comfortable," I said, now completely serious. I got up and closed the door, then lied down next to him. "It's a long story."

* * *

><p>*Obaachan is a japanese name-suffix that refers to an older woman. It can be an aunt, a grandmother, or someone who is completely unrelated.<p>

**Gastric rupture is, as the name implies, bursting of the stomach. It happens when you eat too much (and I don't mean just getting full). They're often associated with Bulimia, being one of the more horrifying effects involved that can cause death. Just to be clear, Sakura is not bulimic. (If she was, I'd probably get a lot more in-detail with the bulimia. *sigh*)

**AN:** I hope you enjoyed this chapter! And I really hope you review~ (as always!^^) Haha, sorry if that gets annoying.^^'


	7. Chapter 6

**AN**: My apologies for the delay in updating. Ugh, school's about to start. *cry* Anyway~ enjoy the chapter, please!

**To:**

**OliveBerries**: Aww thank you~ X3You're just as sweet^^

**Emmy loves her Demon Naru**: Yays! And you're so nice~ X3 *touched* There's a little twist, I hope you like it^^

**mrgirmjaw**: thanks again~^^

* * *

><p><span>The Fall<span>

Chapter 6

**Sakura**

Naruto obediently settled down, facing me with uncharacteristically silent attentiveness. I opened my mouth to speak when I was interrupted. My door swung open. Naruto and I both jumped into a sitting position to look at the newcomer.

When Kentou spotted us – that is, when he spotted _Naruto_ – he stopped in place, his expression kind of guilty.

What? Why in the world…?

Confusion was being replaced with rage.

What the hell! He couldn't even leave me alone now that I was dead, now _could_ he? Who the heck told him he could come in my room? Exactly who gave him permission to interrupt such an important conversation? Why couldn't he just let me be?

(When I thought about it later, I realized that my hatred may have been driving me to find every possible fault in his action. Ignoring all the things he'd done to me in the past, it was unfair and childish of me.)

"Sorry," he mumbled. "I didn't think anyone else would be in here."

Naruto blinked away his surprise. "No problem," he replied good-naturedly. "I was just here because…uh, anyway, my name's Naruto Uzumaki." He stretched out a hand.

I stiffened. I knew that Naruto couldn't help it – this was just how he was – but I was upset that he was so inviting towards Kentou. In my room to boot! And how were we supposed to talk with someone else here? Geez!

Meanwhile, our intruder was shifting uncomfortably. Naruto's friendliness seemed to be making him feel nervous. After a moment's hesitation, he took Naruto's hand and shook (although it looked more like Naruto was the only one doing the actual shaking part).

What was with him? He was acting so timid.

"I'm Kentou Oonishi. Sakura's…," a brief pause, "Sakura's cousin." He let out a sigh.

And suddenly, my tormentor was the one who looked tormented.

He sank onto the bed next to Naruto, his toes still skimming the floor. Naruto copied his position, and gave him a long, almost calculating look. Kentou's head was bent down.

"You're sad?"*

I couldn't tell if Naruto was asking a question or simply stating it. He turned his head towards the door, so that all I could see were their backs.

Kentou nodded without looking up.

_Liar._

"It hurts." Naruto's voice seemed to constrict a bit.

_It hurts._

Nod.

During the silence that followed, the air seemed to be poisoned by the thoughts and feelings that were silently circulating inside that room…that house. The heaviness curved our spines into a hunch. Soon all we'd need was Notre Dom.

Kentou spoke from miles away. "You…were her friend?"

"Yeah," Naruto turned to give me a quick smile. "Well, either that or I was a punching bag. Ow!"

"What's wrong?"

"Ah, um, a really vicious monster-bug just – _ow_!"

It might sound kind of sick when I put it this way, but punching Naruto made me feel better. It cheered me up, this violent-yet-peaceful everyday thing.

"Sorry, sorry! I mean, an _elegant butterfly_ just gave me one heck of a…anyway," Naruto said hastily, trying to distract my cousin from the obvious lack of "elegant butterflies" fluttering around the room. "Yeah, we were friends. I think." He was rubbing his shoulder pointedly, but I could hear a smile in his voice.

Kentou gave Naruto a look that was clearly meant to send a non-verbal message along the lines of, "You're weird." But he still responded to Naruto's prompt. "Yeah…well, um, were you guys…close?"

Naruto's tone went from teasing to dead-serious (no pun intended), just like that. "I'd like to think so."

I felt irrationally embarrassed all of a sudden.

Kentou's voice seemed to get quieter all of a sudden. "I think," he took a breath; "I think…it's my fault."

"What?"

"I think it's my fault…that she died."

**Naruto**

At first I was kind of annoyed when he walked in. Sakura-chan had finally decided to talk to me, let me know what the heck was going on, and we were interrupted. Still, I thought it might be a good idea to talk to him. I couldn't say exactly in what way, but I knew that Kentou Oonishi was definitely involved in all of this.

I wanted to understand…why he seemed so guilty. Why Sakura-chan looked at him like that. Why we had to go to her funeral. And while I was at it, maybe why she was all ghosty and stuff, too.

"I think," he took a breath; "I think…it's my fault."

"What?"

It's not that I didn't hear him. It's not that I didn't know what (or _who)_ he was talking about. It's just that I wasn't sure I wanted to listen anymore. Although I'd already guessed it was like this…even so.

"I think it's my fault…that she died." His expression was screaming at me to listen to him; to relieve him from whatever burdens he'd internally bared.

This was what I'd hoped for. Now that it was within my grasp, I didn't completely want it. Depending on what he said to me, I had no idea how I might react; what I might do.

Still.

If I was right to think that he played some major role in this mess, I would definitely regret it if I didn't hear what he had to say.

For that reason, decided to listen.

**Sakura**

I have to admit, I was interested to hear what my cousin was going to say. I was curious as to what was going on in _that…head_ of his. So when the two of them decided (without my consent) to postpone my turn during this happy-peppy story time, I wasn't as reluctant as I could have been.

Kentou didn't say anything for a while.

In an effort to speed things up, Naruto asked him, "Why?"

After a hesitation, Kentou continued.

**Naruto**

"When we were little, she came to our house – her mom and my mom are sisters, you know. She stayed the whole summer. It's been like that since I was eight, so she was around…seven then. We played together a lot."

I nodded to show that I was still paying attention.

"Then…," he smiled bitterly, "it's kind of stupid, how it started. But I guess I was starting to have a crush on her or something, I don't know, so I picked on her. But when she told on me…I don't know. It was stupid. I wish– I shouldn't have– …." Words seemed to be failing him. Maybe he was embarrassed to say these things to an outsider. Maybe he didn't want to say it out loud. I don't know. Eithe way, he was having a hard time spitting things out.

I turned around to look at Sakura-chan. She sat there expressionlessly, staring in Kentou's general direction. Facing the door again, I asked, "What?"

He shook his head. "I…never mind. Sorry. It's nothing. Forget it." He stood up.

"What? Whoa, hey! Wait!" By the time I could react, he was out the door.

Well, that helped.

Behind me, Sakura-chan's expression was one of disgust. "…couldn't even admit to his own mistakes…," she was muttering to herself.

I heard slow, hesitant footsteps coming closer in the hallway, and Kentou was back. (God, this guy just couldn't make up his mind.) Slowly, he walked into the room, closed the door behind him, and sat on the bed again.

"Sorry," he said again. "I shouldn't make you hear all that stuff and just leave in the middle."

No you shouldn't, I agreed internally.

He took a long, deep breath. (The dude had one heck of a lung capacity, I'll give him that.)

"It's okay," I said, trying to act like my brain wasn't a total mess. "So…Sakura-chan told on you when you picked on her."

He nodded. "Yeah."

**Sakura**

_Coward_, I thought. He couldn't even admit to his own mistakes. (Apparently, I accidently said this out loud.) I'd probably be embarrassed too, if it were me. Even so.

I was genuinely surprised when he came back right after that. He apologized to Naruto, and continued talking as if he hadn't just totally ditched us.

"Yeah," he said when Naruto reminded him where he was at. "So, well, I got angry. I did more stuff to her. It wasn't really serious stuff at first – just taking her dessert, making her play what I wanted and not giving her much of a choice." I noticed that he didn't mention any of the violence. "Then…when we got older, I…it was stupid." He's sure been saying that a lot. "It went from taking desserts to…other stuff."

"_Like_…?" Naruto said.

"Like…once, when she was asleep…I cut her hair."

"That was _you_?" Naruto was on his feet, looking furious. He looked at me for confirmation. For some reason, I was unable to meet his eyes – the eyes that were blazing angrily on my behalf. I looked down, remembering when he'd first seen it short.

_When I went back to school with my newly cut hair, a few people here and there would notice and tell me it looked good, like Ino. Naruto was the only one to ask me about it._

_"Why'd you cut your hair, Sakura-chan?" he asked. "You're always saying that you want to grow it out." _

_"It was too hot," I lied. He stared for another second, and shrugged._

Just slightly, I nodded.

His fists were clenched and white. Kentou, who was very much aware of Naruto's outrage, added hastily, "I felt bad about it later, though."

I won't say something that's as obviously a lie as something like, "I disapprove of violence! It's barbaric! _The horror!_" (Psh. Yeah, right.) Ashamed though I was to admit it, I think I would've liked it if Naruto hit him.

Still, I couldn't really let him get in trouble over hair that was long lost, so I got up and wrapped my hand around his wrist. I tugged it downwards to try and make him sit, but all that moved was his arm. He was more durable than I thought. He looked at me like, "Don't act like he doesn't deserve it."

"Here, I'll hit him for you." I threw my unoccupied fist through Kentou's head, and wiggled my fingers in front of his face. My cousin didn't even twitch. "See? There. It's fine, so calm down." I sat and tugged his arm down again. This time, he complied.

Looking relieved that Naruto had settled down, he told him, "Look, I'm really sorry, you know?"

Naruto said, "I'm not the one you should apologize to." But still, he nodded in acknowledgement of Kentou's apology. "Could you keep going?"

Kentou eyed Naruto warily, probably suspicious of a surprise attack or something, but did as he was asked. "The bullying and stuff…it got more serious around middle school. It was stupid of me."

That again?

"Eventually, the police were involved. I'm taking this special medicine, so they didn't press charges, and I stopped but…."

"But it still affected Sakura-chan," Naruto finished in a forced kind of monotone.

_And here we all are._

* * *

><p><strong>AN: <strong>That's the end of the chapter! I hope the length made up for the long no-updates thing. Reviews are more than more than welcome~! X3

*To clarify, here Naruto and Kentou are referring to Sakura's death.


	8. Chapter 7

**AN**: I'm really sorry for the long wait *insert glare here at whoever invented homework*, and sorry again that it's kind of short, too.^^' I appreciate that none of you have ever complained about it^^. You're all so nice! I love you guys! X3 Thanks for the reviews, too, and keep 'em up! You guys are great! XD

**To:**

**Emmy loves her Demon Naru: **I'm glad you liked it :D Thanks as always~ ^.^ sorry again for the short chappy^^' but I still hope you enjoy it all the same :)

**MelissaKS**: Thanks for reading! :) and I appreciate you telling me. If I make any mistakes in the future, please let me know^^

**Lisa2559**: It feels really nice to have someone appreciating the psychological aspects of your works, and I can tell you're someone who does so very deeply. Thank you for your kind words, and for taking it so seriously :) and it's also always good to know someone reads the AN's ^^' haha

**Yoi no Chi**: don't worry, The Loop sided with the evil one-eyed pegasi, so they're not great company lately anyway. Why don't you try The Box instead? :D they throw great banana-boat parties! And I'm sorry :( perhaps the unfortunate delay (curse you, homework-demons!) will even that up? Enjoy!

* * *

><p><span>The Fall<span>

Chapter 7

**Sakura**

It got so quiet after that.

Something felt wrong, somehow. I wasn't reacting the way I was supposed to.

_Kentou felt bad. Kentou regretted it. Kentou wasn't happy. Kentou had some slight, vague idea of what he did to me._

I tried to make myself understand that all of those things mattered. I repeated the facts, replayed his words, and reworded the meanings so that even an amoeba would be able to interpret it with fair accuracy. But nothing changed. I still didn't seem to get it: something big just happened. Something earth-shattering, ground-breaking– …somebody just grab a thesaurus and start reading through the list, because it was all of those things.

Maybe it just needed to sink in or something.

But it didn't. No matter what I kept telling myself in my head, the rest of me just didn't seem to get the message.

I still loathed Kentou. I was still angry, still boiling my very bones to steam in my burning-cold fury. I was still distraught, and humiliated, and lonely, and dissatisfied: with the world, with the people in it, and somehow, most of all with_ myself_.

Not to mention that I was still dead.

**Naruto**

I half-expected Sakura-chan to disappear – _poof!_ – into the air, or maybe gracefully ascend in a dramatic ray of sunshine from straight above us (which would be random, considering we were inside a house), now that things were finally starting to be resolved. Because they _were_, right?

Nothing like that happened.

No one talked. What could you say after something like that? Maybe I was supposed to have rushed Kentou Oonishi and beat him to a pulp until Sakura-chan came back to life. Or maybe I was supposed to have patted her back soothingly and say something comforting to her – but seriously, what could I have said? "It's okay! Maybe it'll turn out better in your next life"? Yeah, okay.

So, all of us were quiet. Sakura-chan's eyes had that scary look in them again, just like her corpse. I still found it hard to look at her whenever she was like that; it was something you just couldn't get used to.

When the complete stranger to whom he'd just spilled his guts to didn't say anything afterwords, Sakura-chan's cousin mumbled something and fled from the awkwardness and the spine-curving heaviness in the air – a heaviness that carried the weight of one more person than he realized.

Even after he left, it was a long time before either of us moved. I was the last guest to leave the Haruno residence. Sakura-chan didn't follow.

XXX

The clouds blew away that night. A few sunny days passed, and Sakura-chan still didn't turn up anywhere.

Was I imagining things? Was I sick, or delusional? I had to keep going through a bunch of those annoying, cliché maybe-I'm-dreaming-_pinch_-OW-okay-maybe-it-was-a-dream-or-something-but-then-again-maybe-not things. I kept on doubting the things that had happened as well what was and _was_ _not_ happening. I couldn't figure out what I wanted to be real and what I wanted to be fake.

The clocks kept ticking and Sakura-chan was still nowhere to be found. I felt things gnawing at me from the inside, eating me away until I was sure I'd become just as not-there as she had been.

I felt drainingdrainingdrained, had no strength or motivation to do the things I had never used to need a reason to do. (Jiraiya actually took me to the hospital when I turned down his offer of treating me to Ichiraku's Ramen.) It was so tiring. I was exhausted from the relentless, broiling turmoil that wouldn't let me settle down.

For a second, I could almost understand why Sakura had wanted to go to sleep and never wake up.

Almost.

XXX

Five days after her funeral, I woke up in the middle of the night. When I craned my neck to figure out what had woken me, there didn't seem to be any particular reason – the house was just as quiet and dark as it usually was when Jiraiya wasn't staying up and giggling over some perverted magazine. I replaced my head onto my pillow with a soft _thump_ and closed my eyes.

And then they were wide open again. I sat bolt-up right, having felt very-not-imagined movement from the other side of my bed.

**Sakura**

After the funeral, my mom and dad stayed cooped up in the house for days. Visitors came and went, offering my devastated parents tears and comforting words before leaving them once again to their grief. I stayed in my room most of the time; occasionally I would venture to step outside, only to walk right back in.

No one entered my room.

No one wanted to see so much of me, someone who'd fallen and never got back up again.

Over the course of that period in time, while everyone else slowly recovered from the shock or whatever [temporary] impact they'd received from my death, there wasn't a millisecond when my brain took a break from working overdrive. When I wasn't thinking about the two people whose lives I'd chewed up and stepped on the most, or about the "good old days" and the not-so good old days, or the others I'd left behind (both willingly and less so), I would think about Naruto. What was he doing? Was he thinking about me? It seemed wrong, but I kind of hoped he was.

And then I'd start to wonder where I was supposed to – where I would – go from here. Or was I just …_stuck_?

After a number of these cycles, when I got to this point I realized something: I _was_, indeed, stuck. I wasn't doing anything even a bit different from before I fell; I was still just a haunt inside my room that did nothing but mope around all day (ha, get it?).

Death hadn't done anything to change my life. (Besides, you know, _end it_.) I was _right back_ where I'd started.

And I didn't need to be.

XXX

It took a while for me to remember where Naruto's house was, plus another while to get there. When I finally found it, I walked straight through the door (literally) and starting passing from room to room, looking for Naruto's. After witnessing a rather disturbing scene involving Jiraiya and his movie preferences, I found it.

Naruto lied asleep, his brow smooth and his mouth gaping wide open. I could've sworn I saw a bit of drool.

"Aren't you a studmuffin," I muttered.

I guess he was a surprisingly light sleeper because he woke up right after I spoke. He lifted his head and looked around blearily, apparently noticing nothing out of the ordinary, as he plopped down on his pillow again.

I sat at the edge of his bed, looking at him with amusement. It made me jump a bit when he sat straight up, eyes almost bugging right out of his head.

He looked at me.

I looked at him.

He yawned ramen-breath right in my face.

"_Ugh_!" I tried to wave away the contaminated air. "Ever heard of toothpaste?"

"Sure I have," he said defensively. "Mine's ramen-flavored, Sak–" his jaw dropped faster than a rollercoaster. "Wait, _Sakura-chan_?"

**Naruto**

I gaped at her, looking at me all matter-of-fact as she sat on my bed like it was hers, instead of mine. In response, she nodded.

There were a lot of things I could have – and wanted to – say: how glad I was to see her, how much I'd missed her, how worried sick I'd been these past however-many centuries, to ask her where she'd been, and if she was okay.

What I said instead was, "What took you so long?" I could've hit myself.

**Sakura**

I scowled at him. "_Excuse_ me?"

"Nothing."

"Yeah, _sure_," I said. "For your information, I was…," I hesitated, looking down, as I found that I didn't want to tell him what I had been doing. My voice grew quieter with each word as I continued, "I was…looking for you, I guess." It wasn't exactly a lie; I _had_ been looking for him.

I could tell he didn't really believe me. To my relief, he chose not to pressure me. "Okay," he said just as softly as me. A few minutes passed in silence. It wasn't one of those uncomfortable, awkward silences where you feel like you need to talk but no one knows what to say. Even though it was quiet, we were still communicating.

He told me without speaking that he'd been worried; I told him I was sorry. I told him I'd missed him; he said he'd missed me, too.

And then we both asked each other, wearily and a little sadly: what happens now?

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><p><strong>AN:<strong> That's the end Chapter 7! The funeral day is FINALLY over! Geez, it took a lot of chapters to get through didn't it? o.o Thanks for reading, you wonderful amazing-ful people, and please review!


	9. Chapter 8

**AN: **Enough of the songs about love and broken hearts! I think free time is deserving of its own songs, don't you think so? And OMG anime conventions are amazing O_O I totally recommend that you bring a ton of friends and go to one…or more! *ahem* Anyway, thank you for your patience. I hope you enjoy the update! Thanks, my amazing reviewers! I love you guys! *hugs you all*

**To:**

**Emmy loves her Demon Naru**: I'm glad^^ And aww :3 You're such a nice person! Aren't you so glad the funeral day ended though? O_o That took_ so_ many chapters, even I was getting impatient. (And I wrote it! o3o) Haha, anywaaay, hope you enjoy :D

**Senya Higurashi: **I'm so glad! What did you think of the rest of it?

**mrgrimjaw: **thanks as always! Enjoy!

**Kurai Shigashi:** I really appreciate that. And you're right, dying didn't really do much good for her, now did it? We'll see about the ending – it _would_ be great if she does come back to life (no implications intended). If only that could happen in reality, right? :( I hope you enjoy the chapter (short though it may be).

* * *

><p><span>The Fall<span>

Chapter 8

June

**Sakura**

The world kept spinning and revolving around the Sun even after you died. Unsure of what else to do, I went to school with Naruto.

The first day, I found myself feeling nervous, like a little kid does when they begin grade school. Not much seemed to have changed since the fall. The first difference I noticed was in my homeroom class. Sitting on my desk rested a wilted daffodil, with the few petals that still remained attached to the stem hanging limply over the side of a generic, clear plastic vase. Most people didn't pay it much notice; a few people glanced at it while passing by, a couple gave it a curt nod. Ino slid her fingers gently around the edges and the base of the vase, stroking them, before slowly walking towards her desk. Naruto stared at it as if it would blurt out the answers to all the homework he'd given up on doing the night before.

No one, of course, paid me the slightest bit of attention as I followed Naruto around.

I didn't have to worry about what other people thought of my appearance anymore; heck, I didn't have to worry about what they thought of me, period.

I told myself I'd get used to it.

_Why should I have to get used to something like that?_

I could say whatever I wanted to them, I could taunt them

_Listen to me_

and poke them and stick my hands through them, and they didn't even blink in acknowledgement.

_Didn't they feel anything?_

It was fun.

I tried to ignore the painful contractions I received in my chest whenever they failed to notice me.

_Look at me_

During classes, I could float over the teachers head and insult every detail I could think of,

_I'm still here_

and I could laugh at Naruto as he tried to suppress his giggles the whole time.

_and he's the only one who knows it._

July

The arrival of summer break marked the end of school and the beginning of long, hot days that would be spent fending off the ever-looming threat of boredom. It did, at least, for Naruto and all the other [living] teens of across the globe.

The first few days were action-packed: invitations for Naruto to join people at end-of-school parties and visits to the beach (and combinations thereof) were flying at the kid left and right. (God, did he have a ton of friends.) The days following them, however, weren't. We just hung lethargically around Naruto's house, searching for some mildly interesting way to spend our limitless free time, as Naruto struggled to escape the worst of the summer heat by eating endless amounts of ice cream and popsicles.

"I swear," he told me once, "at this rate, I won't be able to fit through the door." I rolled my eyes at his exaggeration. Like Naruto Uzumaki could get fat.

I played video games for the first time ever (for some reason, I could touch them when Naruto sat next to me). Soon I got tired of having my butt kicked over and over, and so we went back to being bored again.

August

**Naruto**

Sakura-chan and I spent almost every waking hour with each other, with some necessary exceptions. (Like the shower, for instance.) We became closer than I ever really thought possible and just thinking about that made it hard not to smile.

But there was another, less pleasant result of being around her so much: I was beginning to get sick of her. Even though I loved being around her and talking to her and getting to know her better than almost anyone else did - even though it was all _amazing_ - there was a point when it got to be enough.

Sakura-chan seemed to think so, too.

One day, we were sitting together under the shade of a tree when she looked me in the eye and said, "Naruto, I'm sorry, but I need a break. So I'm gonna go for a while. See ya!"

"…Um, okay, I guess. Bye!" I waved.

**Sakura**

I genuinely enjoyed being with Naruto, don't get me wrong. (It's okay. I was surprised, too.) But you can get sick of just about anyone if you're around them long enough. It was starting to become apparent that he felt the same way, too. So I decided it would benefit the both of us if we just took a break. (Not a couple-break kind of break, just a normal-break break.)

I was a good distance away – a good couple hundred feet, at least – by the time he responded. When I turned to wave at him, already missing him almost painfully, I lifted my and then froze, staring at it. I sucked a world of air into my nonexistent lungs. Around my wrist was thick, silver, metal bracelet – no, a _cuff_. And connected to my new accessory was a chain. My eyes followed it to its other end – a cuff, wrapped around the wrist of none other than Naruto, who was still waving as if he hadn't noticed its sudden appearance.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong> Hope you liked it! Please review!


	10. Chapter 9

**AN: **Yay for updates! Guys, I was so happy with all the reviews, so here's a super-long post for all you wonderful people! (Plus, it's midnight: the time when all things evil and teen roam around. Muahahaha!) The review responses are at the bottom, but I recommend reading the fic first. Please tell me what you thought of this one! Love ya all!

* * *

><p><span>The Fall<span>

Chapter 9

**Naruto**

I could tell something was up from the look on Sakura-chan's face. She turned back to me with a smile that was almost immediately replaced by a stunned, sort of horrified expression. I looked around to see what she was looking at, but there wasn't anything there – at least, nothing that would get a face like _that_ out of her. Unless she had some weird phobia of dandelions. She was still staring when I turned around.

The only thing left for her to be staring at so unflatteringly was…me.

Well, _ouch._

A little late, I lowered my arm while trying not to show her how much it bothered me to have her look at me that way. It was hard.

Then, I noticed something: she was following it by dipping her head as it made its progress down to my side. So…she was staring at my _arm_? I looked at it, too. It wasn't exactly sprouting feathers. By the time my eyes returned to her, I was feeling seriously confused.

"Sakura-chan," I called, "what's wrong?"

She looked up, took a step towards me, and opened her mouth to say something – only to stop again. I was pretty sure she was biting her lip. She said something I couldn't hear.

"What?"

This time, she shouted, "Nothing!"

I never claimed to be smart with these things, but you didn't really need to be to see that she was lying. I was about to tell her so when she turned and ran off. As if all that wasn't weird enough, she kept looking back at me as she dashed away.

And I thought that _living_ girls were confusing.

XXX

I waited for Sakura-chan to come home. She didn't. That night, the only time I saw her in my nightmares.

Dying.

I would walk onto the roof and be surprised when I found her there, over the safety rail. Sakura-chan turned back to look at me, and our eyes would meet. Then she was gone – one second she was falling off of the roof, and the next, she lay on the ground, limp and broken and dead.

As if _once_ wasn't bad enough, it would replay. She fell and fell and fell and fell and died and died and died and died, and I couldn't save her. Not even once.

I woke up sweating feverishly. Sakura-chan still hadn't come home.

_Home._

Since when was it her home, too? Or maybe I was the only one who thought that way.

I closed my eyes. Before I knew it, my nightmare was repeating itself, as if it had forgotten that it was supposed to be confined to my sleeping hours.

When I opened my eyes again, I was bent over and my face was trying to drown in my hands.

**Sakura**

The chain kept following me around. Even when the other end (a.k.a. Naruto) wasn't anywhere near me, it never broke; it just kept dragging around soundlessly behind me, like a long metal snake that was sleep-slithering.

I didn't go back to Naruto that night. I didn't want to.

Instead I wondered around the streets, thinking. What was with the chain? Did it really just appear, or had it always been there?

I groaned in frustration. Wasn't being dead supposed to end your problems? Wasn't being dead supposed to be peaceful – a calm, endless state of rest, relaxation, and stresslessness? I had honestly believed it would be. I'd really thought–!

_But now look at yourself._

I missed Naruto. Where was he? I needed someone right now. I needed someone to tell me everything was going to be okay, that it would all work out somehow, and I wasn't alone because they were there. They were there for me.

Naruto was the only someone I had anymore.

Why did I even leave him in the first place?

I looked down at the cuff resentfully. An irrational tsunami of rage flooded me, engulfed me, swallowed me whole and washed me away as I thought about the stupid thing. It bothered me. It _reallyreallyreally_ bothered me. I started kicking and tearing at the chain savagely; all of a sudden it seemed to represent everything I'd gone through up until this point.

I stomped and yanked and kicked and slapped and snarled and even considered biting the cursed thing. I did it for Kentou, for my funeral, for my parent's grief, for the burdens I presented to Naruto just by _being_, for everyone who never saw me no matter what I did or said to them, my pain, my anger, my hatred, my loneliness, for dying and, finally, for coming back again.

And it still wasn't enough. Not nearly enough. I was still so _hopelessly_ dissatisfied.

The word seemed to resound within me. _Hopeless._

Eventually, my anger faded, but it didn't go away. Nothing did. Not my memories with Kentou. Not my feelings. Not my mistakes. Not even the chain.

I slumped to the ground from all that melodramatic emotional and mental exhaustion.

The mysteries of the chain presented me with a new distraction that I welcomed. Thoughtfully, I examined my newest accessory.

I could touch it – I wouldn't be wearing it otherwise – even without Naruto around, which was new. Although that might have been because it was connected to him, as well; in a way, it connected us both.

Wait.

I sat up straight. That brought up another thought – one I'd already thought about but hadn't spent much time on. Maybe the chain had something to do with why Naruto – and _only_ Naruto – could see me. Maybe it represented those "attachments left behind" that all those ghost hunter people and crystal ball freaks on TV were always talking about. I snorted. If it was, then that would mean they were actually _right_ about something. Mother Nature must have gotten a glitch in her programming system because that was _so_ not natural.

I shrugged to myself and got back up. Night was falling and I didn't feel like hanging around to watch the local potheads smoke weed. Ugh. I shuddered at the thought. I still didn't understand why anyone would want to do that stuff. To be honest, I wasn't too interested in finding out, either.

Though I considered going back to Naruto's place – he was probably worried – I decided not against it: we could both use some time to ourselves, and I had some thinking to do. After a moment, I started walking again.

XXX

My parents seemed to be doing better than they had been a few months ago. They didn't talk as much as they used to, and there was a lot less laughter – especially with all the reminders hanging around the house – but they were continuing on with their lives. I can't deny that I was touched, though, by how reluctant they were to leave me behind. At the same time, I wished they would just forget me and maybe have another kid (though they were kinda old). If they did, I hoped mom stayed away from the wild mushrooms this time. (Mom said they did some funny things to my coloration genes.)

After checking up on them, I went to my room. It was still virtually untouched, although there wasn't as much dust as there should have been. Icy needles slid cleanly into my unbeating heart when I saw how rumpled the covers on my bed were. Had someone slept in it? I imagined my mom slowly pulling herself into my bed, trying not to crease the smooth covers as she did so. The thought made me subconsciously squeeze my eyes shut to try to get rid of the image.

But the problem was, it wasn't even there in the first place.

**Naruto**

Sakura-chan didn't come back for a few days. Without knowing where she could be, I was left without any option other than waiting. It kind of made me think about all those scenes from movies and stuff, where someone leaves and the other stays, just waiting for that person. The person who leaves usually has some obvious difficulties like villains or magical journeys or whatever. But I'd never thought that it might be hard for the person who got left behind, too.

And then Sakura-chan left me behind.

All I seemed to be able to do was wait for her.

XXX

For some reason, Sakura-chan seems to have this thing for coming back in situations where I least expect it. Like, say, when I was taking a shower.

Yeah…_awkward._

September

**Sakura**

After the day that the chain appeared, it was always there. I thought about telling Naruto about it but decided against it for the time being. Somehow, telling him we were connected by an invisible chain sounded _really_…not how I wanted it to sound. So I decided to wait until he saw it, until it disappeared, or I found some way to prove it existed without making a complete fool of myself. Luckily, Naruto seemed to sense I didn't want to talk about it with him, so he didn't ask. Or maybe he just didn't want to know. I'm not sure which was the case, but either way he kept quiet about it.

Despite that, things changed a little since then. The secret I was keeping from him seemed to build barriers between whatever brief openness we'd had before. I didn't hang around him all the time anymore, because sometimes being around him became hard for the both of us.

October

Whether Naruto had noticed it or not, I _had_: being around me was hard for him.

It didn't take a genius to figure out why. When he was with me around other people, he had to act like I wasn't there. He couldn't let himself look at me for too long, let alone do something like talk with me or laugh at me when I poke fun at people. Although it went against his nature, he had to care about what everybody thought of his actions; he had to be careful, be normal, or else he'd wind up in a padded cell halfway across the continent, taking meds that would turn him into a zombie and worse, into a _stranger_.

And it would be all my fault.

November

I would stay with him and keep him company, of course I would, but wouldn't that just make things worse? Then we'd be truly cut off from the world, clinging to each other so much that we would hate each other, _despise_ each other, but we'd _still_ cling onto each other because we had nothing else and no one else to grip.

And it would be all my fault–

**Naruto**

Sakura-chan was acting weird. She avoided me a lot.

December

**Sakura**

all my fault–

**Naruto**

It just kept getting worse.

January

**Sakura**

_all my fault– _

February

**Naruto**

Soon, she stopped showing up to school.

March

**Sakura**

_allmyfault. _

So Naruto had to be careful, so careful, and it was going to drive him crazy. I was going to drive him crazy.

Whether anyone saw him talking to thin air or not.

April

* * *

><p><strong>AN: <strong>Okay, that's the end of the chapter! I hope it was satisfactorily long, and even more satisfactorily good-quality (;D), 'cause you guys are awesome and made me pumped enough to write it! X3

**To:**

**Emmy loves her Demon Naru**: I'd be lying if I said I wasn't excited to post this! X3 (I'm one of those authors that's really impatient to have their stories read, you know? Except I love getting feedback so people can tell me what they think so far. That's why I love your reviews^^) Annnyway, enough about me (it's the story you're here to read, right? ;D) why don't you tell me your opinion on this chapter, hmm? :3

**mrgirmjaw**: why, thank you :) I hope you liked this chapter, too^^

**Ichigo Kuroyuki**: I am happy to say that I have :D and you have my nickname! O_o (at least the first part)

**9-tailed reaper**: hope this one was more satisfying^^ and I _really_ hope you still like where it's going :D

**Kurai Shigashi: **You flatter me^^And yes, indeed, me'sailor, much t'be revealed. Arr! ^.# Did this help answer some of your questions?^^

**strawberry030: **thank you :)and I luv strawberries^^ (see above comments.) Lol I sound like my textbook. Wait. Ew! O_e

**Damsel in Shining Armor**: Aww your comment keeps making me smile every time I read it haha^^ I hope enjoyed this chapter, as well!


	11. Chapter 10

**AN: **Guess what time it is? :D Pumpkin pie time, that's what! XD Happy Thanksgiving! (or, as I like to say, "Happy Pumpkin Pie Day!") Thanks for all the feedback guys! I am so _THANK_ful! ;D

Okay, so about this chapter: I'm kinda gonna back track a little, to cover some of the stuff that happened during the guilt fest, so I apologize if it confuses you. Let me know if you need anything clarified, and I'll do my best to answer your questions.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any characters other than my own.

**To: **

**tvizz: **Omg no, no! Sweetie, of course I'm not offended! XD I appreciate all opinions, whether random or constructive or flattering :D And is it? To tell the truth, I don't really have any video games (unless you count a Nintendo DS) so I can't say I know those games. But I think I know what you mean. *nods* And, hey, from my perspective, having my fic compared to anything someone would find worth playing is a good thing^^ so thank you!

**mrgirmjaw:** aww I'm glad :D I must admit, I was rather worried about the last chapter myself, so it was a relief to read all the positivity^^

**9-tailed reaper: **I'm glad you're not dissatisfied^^ and if I do make any errors (grammatical or otherwise) feel free to point them out or criticize them to your heart's content, because I can totally understand if that bothers you. *nods*

**Ichigo Kuroyuki: **lol thanks! I'm glad it's fascinating :D

**Emmy loves her Demon Naru: **don't worry, the chain part shall be explained soon *winks (like the dork I am)* and yay for yayz! Yayz are always a good sign! XD I'm glad you're happy with the chapter! As I said to mrgirmjaw, that chapter had me kind of worried. e_O so thanks! XD

**Kurai Shigashi:** Omg you're right! O_o I didn't even notice! My bad^^' I hope this chapter kind of makes up for it, although those are my favorite holidays. (how did I miss them? .) I'm so glad you appreciate the logic and insight :D and I respect that you say not only what you liked about it, but what you dislike. (I really value integrity^^) Hope you like what you read!

* * *

><p><span>The Fall<span>

Chapter 10

**Naruto**

I had no clue as to what sort of inner conflict Sakura-chan was dealing with. Whatever had started that one summer day changed something. Though I had no idea what was going on or how it had happened, I knew one thing for sure: I didn't like it.

Since Sakura-chan didn't seem to want me to find out what was going on – let alone actually try to be of some help – I decided it might be a good idea to try to wait.

And wait.

And wait.

And wait, even though I wanted to help so much, so so much, I waited. And I told myself I would keep waiting, wait until she solved her problem on her own or came to me herself. But waiting was so hard; watching Sakura-chan struggle and drag herself away into some unknown universe where she could get lost and never find her way back out again, it was so _hard_.

But I waited.

I waited.

I waited.

The months pulled themselves by sluggishly and Sakura-chan was only disappearing further into a place where I couldn't follow her.

Sakura-chan pretended not to notice when it was her birthday. It brought no joy. No one celebrated for her "Sweet Sixteen" thing. Although we'd been seeing a lot _less_ of each other lately, the two of us still saw a lot of each other. Therefore, it was hard to be completely sure, but I was pretty certain that Sakura-chan the Ghost wasn't getting any older. She still looked like she'd just turned fifteen a few weeks ago.

It was on the day that Sakura Haruno was supposed to turn sixteen when I realized: it had been almost a whole year since she'd died.

Then, suddenly, it was the day before she died.

**Sakura**

I hated being around Naruto. I hated it. I hated making him be so considerate of his actions – something I'd used to internally beg for, and now something that appalled me. Because it wasn't right. Naruto wasn't supposed to have to think so much about things, be so careful about his actions. Naruto was supposed to be spontaneous, exciting, annoying and oblivious and accidentally insensitive and way too easy to antagonize.

Naruto was supposed to be happy.

But because I was around, he was worried. He worried about being too careless and doing something he shouldn't, something that might wind him up in a too-clean hospital, under the constant watch of nurses and security, numbed and dazed from regular sets of pills he didn't even need.

Because I was around, Naruto couldn't be himself.

It scared me. It frightened me beyond imagination, beyond freaking _death _to think that I was the cause of it.

But.

But at the same time, I hated _not _to be around him.

Whenever we were apart, separated by goodbyes or sleep or simply by _me_, the chain on my wrist seemed to be there to remind me of the person who was so unwittingly at the other end. It reminded me of him, which made me think of not only why we should just stay away from each other, but also of the all reasons – from the toweringly huge ones to the almost insignificantly miniscule ones – that I didn't want to.

_I don't want us to be apart._

XXX

The days left in March after my birthday were very limited in number. As if they seemed to realize that fact, those days seemed to try to stretchstretchstretch to exceed the twenty-four hour limit. The hours were built upon minutes, minutes of seconds; the second were built upon silence.

For there was a hush in Naruto's house.

Naruto and I didn't talk much during the days that followed my would-be Sweet Sixteen. To be honest, even I wasn't quite sure why, myself. Maybe we weren't in the mood for chit-chat. Or maybe we just didn't know what to say. Either way, neither of us did much speaking. Even Jiraiya, who was completely unaware of my ghostly existence, was fairly quiet. He just worked on his novel, trying to muffle the occasional fits of giggles that seemed to erupt at regular intervals when he was in his "writing mode".

Then, March was over.

It was April Fools' Day: the day before I died.

XXX

"Sakura-chan!" Naruto's wannabe-whisper broke the long period of soundlessness on the morning of April Fools' Day.

I'd been zoning out, pushing reality to the side while I drowned in the every crevice of my mind; it's what I always did when Naruto slept (because apparently ghosts are not only dead – they're also insomniacs).

"Sakura-chan!" he whispered again, a bit louder. "Are you awake?"

"No."

"Oh, good," he gave me a quick smile, before meeting my eyes with a more serious look. "Sakura-chan, don't move." His eyes were twinkling intensely at me, blue and too pretty to be fair.

"What?" I mumbled.

He repeated, "Don't move." He lifted his hand slowly up, towards my head. He placed his hand softly behind my ear, barely touching my hair.

I bet my eyes were bugging out of their sockets right about then.

"Naruto, what are you–" I was sputtering. Sputtering! Like some heroine from one of those vampire romances, right before the "dark, mysterious, and conveniently handsome" hero was about to plant his fangs rightinto her – wait, _what_? What the heck was I thinking about? "What–?"

"There's a spider in your hair."

"Oh," I said. For some reason, I felt a little…disappointed? Huh? "Okay."

Naruto stopped upon hearing my reply, and looked down at me. "'_Okay_'?" He looked disappointed, too.

God, why was everyone feeling so disappointed this morning?

"Yeah…? Okay."

He rolled his eyes. "Sakura-chan," he sighed melodramatically, "you're not supposed to be all cool with it! That ruins the fun!" He removed his hand from my hair and showed me his outstretched palm. In it, he held…

"A rubber spider?" I poked it, just to make sure. "You were trying to pull one on me?" I mused. "Huh. Well, nice job."

"Look, normally that kind of stuff would work. You just did it wrong." He tried to sound defensive, but I could almost hear the laughter he seemed to be suppressing.

I couldn't help but to smile at the sound – the sweet sound – that I hadn't heard in too long.

**Naruto**

Okay, so the rubber spider prank wasn't exactly _original_. As it turned out, it wasn't even a success. But it still seemed to do what I'd wanted it to: it got Sakura-chan to smile.

In the end, wasn't that what mattered?

In any case, I'd thought that it might be a good idea to lighten the mood a bit. Because the conversation that was coming, the one that I'd decided could no longer be avoided, wasn't going to bring any laughs.

Not from me.

Not from Sakura-chan - _definitely_ not.

**Sakura**

When I saw the look on Naruto's face – bitter-sweet and a little pained – my smile faded.

I didn't notice that a weight had been lifted until it returned, heavy and sharp and crushingly strong.

"What is it?" I found myself whispering. (And I mean _real_ whispering – not like Naruto's own harsh, carrying brand.)

"Sakura-chan."

I tore my gaze away from his. I didn't want to look in his eyes. Not when they were screaming at me "_I'm sorry_".

"Sakura-chan," he took a deep breath, "tell me what's going on."

I knew what would happen if I looked at him again, met his blue-blue gaze again: I'd crumble. I'd spill my guts out to him, my angsty teenage-girl guts. There might be tears (my resolve hardened with my horror at the thought of it).

And he'd crumble too. It would happen _slowlyslowlyslowly_, painfully and achingly slowly, as me and my problems chipped away at him until he was nothing but dust – _pieces _of dust – that would blow away in a soft breeze no one else would feel.

It wouldn't even take that much to pulverize us both, because so much had already happened. Not much else was needed.

_all my fault_

It wasn't until after it was too late that I realized I'd said those words aloud.

"What's all your fault?" Naruto asked slowly.

I didn't gasp. I didn't start hyperventilating or crying or going into hysterics. I simply froze, wishing I was as invisible to Naruto Uzumaki as I was to the rest of the world.

But I wasn't.

He and I both knew that I was there.

"Sakura-chan," he said again, "what's all your fault?"

It was back again: the magical Tsunami of Emotion.

guilt

anger

loneliness

pain

frustration

dissatisfaction

I was no surfer.

Naruto was saying something, but I couldn't make out the words; the great wave was like a barrier, muffling my senses and drowning me, crushing me, bursting me wide open–

Just when I was about to give into self-pity, I realized something:

I shouldn't.

Self-pity was what had gotten me here – here, meaning dead, stuck, left using Naruto as a crutch.

I couldn't let him break trying to support me.

And so, I'd just have to support myself.

The tsunami seemed to subside. It was still there, just fainter – faint enough for me to regain my senses.

"Sakura-chan," Naruto persisted, his tone gentle but firm.

I looked at the chain.

And then looked a lot harder.

The links were loosening.

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><p><strong>AN: <strong>Okay, that's the end of chapter ten! We're closing in on the finale, but rest assured there will be some (attempted) explanations before that happens. Please tell me what you thought! (Be brutally honest, if you want; go for it! 8D)


	12. Chapter 11

**AN:** Long time no update! Have a good holiday? I apologize for the long delay. Here's the chapter. Hope it makes the wait worth it!

Happy 2012, people!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own this story or any characters other than my own.

Thank you to you wonderful reviewers!

**To: **

**mrgirmjaw:** Thanks! Hope you like this chapter too :D

**9-tailed reaper**: I'm glad the spider moment served its purpose! I have a habit of adding in little bits of humor (pathetic humor though it may sometimes be haha) when things get less than cheerful. I don't have any stories planned at the moment, but it's likely that I'll write another one at some point. I hope you read it when I do!

**Ichigo Kuroyuki**: I feel bad about the long wait. Hope you still like it though!

**Emmy loves her Demon Naru**: I hope this chapter turns out to be to your liking (same to the rest of you, of course!) And if you have any questions after the explanations of this chapter, just let me know and I'll do my best to answer them^^

**Kurai Shigashi: **I'm glad you were able to review in any case :D I appreciate you telling me about the setting thing. It's good to know what I need to work on. (Although you seem to have gotten where I imagined the setting to be anyway! XD You're amazing!) It's so wonderful to know that you were so touched by this story! I sincerely hope you like the rest of it, although to be honest I don't have high hopes^^'

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><p><span>The Fall<span>

Chapter 11

**Sakura**

The links were loosening.

"What the–?" I wondered aloud.

"Sakura-ch–"

"Shh," I hushed Naruto absentmindedly, trying to think.

What was going on? What had changed?

And then it clicked. I didn't have any way of knowing for sure, but I had a pretty good feeling that this was it.

"Naruto, listen," I said. He nodded. I explained to him about how the chain had appeared all of a sudden. While I did so, somewhere in the corner of my mind I couldn't help but marvel at how focused he was on what I was saying. He didn't interrupt or even look around; he just met my gaze with his own, diligently paying a hundred and ten percent of his attention. It was a little unnerving. But I just sort of pushed those thoughts to the side, because the last thing I needed was to be the one getting all sidetracked when Naruto was being so attentive.

"At first, I thought it represented my, uh," I hesitated, finding what I was trying to say somewhat awkward, "_attachment _to you." God, I hoped that didn't come out the wrong way.

It took me a few seconds to think of how to best explain the next part – _precious_ seconds, I was starting to think as the links slowly bent and curved themselves in a way that threatened to undo their binding with one another. I felt a flutter of panic and hastily tried to soothe my nerves. Panic would only make things worse.

**Naruto**

Once I realized that Sakura-chan was going to try to explain things to me, to _finally_ let me understand what was going on inside her head, I was a statue. I froze in place with my mouth clamped tightly shut and my eyes frozen on her. I had no idea what was going on, so I thought it best to let her try to explain it all to me.

When she told me about the chain thingy, for some reason I felt kind of embarrassed. I mean, she'd just said we were connected, right? We were connected, Sakura-chan and I. Connected. I looked at our wrists, but I didn't see or feel a thing.

Thoughts shot through my mind going a mile a minute as I listen to what she had to say. Especially when she admitted she was attached to me. The fact that she cared about me – not to mention that she said it _out loud_ – was enough to make my heart skip and jump up into the air and dance the Macarena. (I would've wished I had that recorded, but somehow I doubted she'd show up anyway. Darn.)

On that note, she continued, "You know, Naruto, lately I've been noticing things. About you and me, that is."

I inhaled out of some sudden, inexplicable anticipation.

"All this time, ever since I…fell, died, whatever–" my heart sank at the memory and I let out the air I'd sucked in "–and then came back as a ghost…ever since then I've been dependent on you."

Wait, what? "Sakura-chan," I said confusedly, "I don't understand. _You _were dependent on _me_? Wasn't _I _the one who was dependent on _you_?"

"What do you–?"

"I depended on you!" I insisted. "Because, look. Without you, I'd still be all upset!"

"Naruto, the reason you were upset in the first place was because I'd died!"

I opened my mouth to argue, but couldn't really think of anything to say. So my jaw just kinda hung loose like that until I thought to shut it again.

"See?" Sakura-chan said pointedly. She didn't sound triumphant, the way someone usually would when they prove themselves right. She only sounded upset. "You can't deny it, can you? Because it's true. Naruto, all I've done is burden you." I felt a painful throb in my chest at the tone of her voice. "If it weren't for me, you wouldn't have to worry about getting caught speaking to me. You wouldn't have to question your sanity."

I considered telling her that I hadn't _been_ questioning my sanity but thought better of it, figuring I'd just get hit or something.

"You wouldn't have to worry about me at all – you _still _don't, not to mention shouldn't! – or be considerate of me or anything. All I've done is make you into a crutch for the problems that should've died with me!" Tears flooded her green eyes and spilled over. They left shining tracks down the cheeks that no one but me could see.

I stepped forward (without really knowing why I was) and drew her into a big bear hug. She squirmed for a few seconds, but eventually gave up and simply leaned her head against me.

I whispered (because for some reason, it felt like we were supposed to be quiet), "I don't think you're a burden," I told her honestly. "Sakura-chan, whether you're a ghost or a sparkly vampire or a bowl of ramen or a _teenager_," I pretended to shudder in horror and she choked a tiny laugh past her sobs, "I'll always be glad to have you around. Because no matter _what_ you are, you're still _you_."

**Sakura**

That was probably the nicest thing anyone had ever said to me in my life (and death). Poor Naruto got more emotional-ghost goo on his shirt, but he didn't seem to notice. I closed my eyes and wished for a second that we could just stay that way.

But then I remembered: I wouldn't rely on him anymore. I couldn't.

I was going to be strong – strong enough to support myself.

And in any case, the chains were almost broken. I had no idea what would happen once they broke apart, so I had to continue.

Reluctantly, I peeled away. Naruto looked at me questioningly, but I still had things to tell him.

"Anyways, the point is," I tried to become the image of cool-mindedness, "I told myself – I _promised_ myself – something: from now on, I'll be independent. I won't rely on you or anyone else to help carry my burdens; I'll carry them all on my own. And Naruto, after that – no, _because_ of that – the chain began to loosen."

"It's– wait– it _what_?" he sputtered.

"The chain began to loosen," I repeated, "which made me start to think that maybe that chain represented, rather than how attached I am to you, how much I rely on you. My soul, spirit, whatever," I gestured in the general direction of myself, "came to be so dependent on you that it must've…I don't know, somehow reached out towards your, uh, soul." I hated all of this spirit talk. It was so vague and hypothetical. So much darned guess work! It annoyed me how uncertain all of it was. "And now our souls became attached. Which, I'm guessing, probably has something to do with why you can see me."

"Wait," Naruto said, "wouldn't that mean you'd have had to 'rely' on me before you died, then? It feels weird saying this out loud, but we didn't really hang out that much after primary school, let alone _share our souls_ or whatever. I mean, sure, I'd might have _liked_ to, but _no._ _Someone_ just had to–"

"Be quiet and focus!" I snapped, losing my patience. "I don't know about that, Naruto. I'm as confused as you are. I think it might be because you saw me die, though, and you shouted my name and I couldn't get it out of my head! And _oh my freaking God_, I can't _think_ straight right now because for all I know, something very bad or unnecessarily dramatic might happen when this stupid chain–" I gasped as the a link disintegrated before my eyes. "Oh my God it's vaporizing!"

"I want to see!" Naruto moaned.

If I'd been more calm, I might have rolled my eyes. Instead, I ran up to Naruto and threw my arms around him. "I'm so sorry Naruto! I have no idea what's about to happen, so I just thought I should tell you–" my mind went blank. Huh? What did I want to tell him?

Half of the links were gone.

If I had been Ino, I'd be shrieking my head off by now. Since I was hopelessly myself, I did the first thing I could think of and punched Naruto out of sheer panic.

"Ow, Sakura-chan! That _hurt_!"

"I'm sorry," I said. "I'm sorry. Oh, God, Naruto, I'm so sorry." I kept apologizing: apologizing for punching him, for being such a jerk for all those years, for telling him he looked like an orange marshmallow in his jacket when we were eight, for showing up in front of him again after getting buried. I was sorry for so many things, and _he had to know he had to know._

Three-fourths were gone.

"You're an idiot but you're an amazing idiot so don't you dare change!" I was just spitting out whatever popped into my head at this point. My head was a mess. "Naruto, I–"

The chain disappeared.

I held my breath and braced myself for anything from a landscape made up of bones and devils and fire and pain to a world of light and white and clouds and feathery wings to a rain of various kinds of livestock.

I waited.

Nothing changed.

Nothing had changed!

I hadn't thought I'd wanted things to stay the way they were until the relief hit me – sweet, sweet relief.

I turned to Naruto, a smile stretching across my face and opened my mouth to let him know everything would be okay. He beat me to the chase and was the first to speak.

"Hey," he whipped his head around as though he was trying to find something. "Sakura-chan?"

My insides froze. I froze. The world might as well have frozen, too.

_No_

"Sakura-chan?" He kept looking.

"Naruto?" I whispered.

"Where are you?" he asked.

_No!_

"I'm right here!" I screamed.

_Please, no!_

"Sakura-chan?" Naruto called again.

As though he hadn't heard me.

As though he didn't know I was there.

_**The End**_

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><p><strong>AN: <strong>Love it? Tell me! Hate it? Tell me! Don't care? Tell me! :D lol Please review and tell me what you think!

Sorry if the ending came across as abrupt~^^'


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